Seeking to resolve a tortuous and costly legal battle, Dow Corning Corp. reached a tentative agreement with negotiators for women with silicone breast implants Wednesday to pay $3.2 billion to settle claims by more than 170,000 women that the implants harmed their health. The settlement would compensate women based on the seriousness of injury they claim, providing up to $300,000 for those who have a severely debilitating illness.

Good news for Mike Judge fans. The writer-director's new HBO series "Silicon Valley" has been renewed for a second season. HBO announced the renewal on Monday, along with the fourth-season renewal of its Julia Louis-Dreyfus comedy "Veep. " Both comedies, which air after HBO's massive hit "Game of Thrones," have done well by critics this season. "Silicon Valley" is Judge's return to series TV after his hit "King of the Hill" ended in 2010 and "The Goode Family" was canceled after 13 episodes on ABC in 2009.

Women who want to enlarge their breasts or reconstruct them after surgery have two basic alternatives to silicone gel breast implants: * Saline-filled implants. These consist of a silicone envelope that is implanted under the skin of the breast. They can be filled with saline solution before or after implantation. * Breast reconstruction. This involves using a patient's own tissue, usually from the lower abdomen, thighs or buttocks.

Comcast Corp., already the nation's largest cable and Internet provider, says it needs to get bigger to compete against the formidable giants of Silicon Valley. The Philadelphia-based cable behemoth said in a government filing Tuesday that its proposed $40-billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable Inc. will benefit consumers without limiting competition. Both companies contend that they need muscle to compete against emerging competition from Google Inc., Apple Inc., Netflix Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. Comcast said in a 175-page document filed with the Federal Communications Commission that the deal would mean better Internet and cable TV service for millions of consumers.

At the Progressive International Motorcycle Show going on this weekend at the Long Beach Convention Center, there's an odd sight at a few booths: people with large plastic syringes in their ears, getting shot with globs of colorful silicone. It's not a new body-modification fad, but instead the making of custom earplugs. Wearing ear protection while riding is important -- researchers have found that motorcyclists who don't wear some sort of earplugs while riding can suffer hearing loss.

The Food and Drug Administration is essentially telling U.S. consumers worried about silicone breast implants: “Told you so.” But in releasing new research backing up its 2006 decision to allow the implants back onto the market, the agency also reminds women, in a way, that they have only two choices — silicone or saline. So let’s take a look at those options. Until 2006, silicone implants had been under a 14-year ban by the FDA because of concerns that leaks or ruptures could increase the risk of certain diseases, including breast cancer and connective tissue diseases.

Five years after allowing silicone breast implants back on the market, the Food and Drug Administration said further studies showed the decision was sound. The FDA was criticized by consumer groups in 2006 for approving the implants after a 14-year hiatus because of widespread fear that they caused a range of illnesses. During that period, women seeking implants for cosmetic reasons had been limited to the less-natural-feeling saline implants, which stayed on the market. But research by the two manufacturers of the implants, released in a report Wednesday, indicates that they have a "reasonable assurance of safety and effectiveness" when used properly, the FDA said.

Plastic surgeons asked the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday to convene a new panel of scientific experts to review the latest safety information on silicone gel breast implants. Officials of the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons, based in Chicago, said their offices have received a significant increase in calls from anxious women who have breast implants.

A federal judge said Monday that he was leaning toward barring a Newport Beach dermatologist from injecting liquid silicone into his patients' faces. But the judge agreed to give the physician more time to support his contention that the treatment for acne scarring and wrinkles is exempt from governmental regulation. U.S. District Judge William J. Rea gave Dr. James E. Fulton Jr. until May 11 to file additional arguments and the U.S.

Federal authorities filed suit Friday to stop a Newport Beach dermatologist from injecting patients with industrial-grade liquid silicone to correct skin conditions such as wrinkles and acne scars. The complaint was filed against Dr. James E. Fulton, a co-developer of Retin-A, the Vitamin A derivative that has been touted as an effective anti-wrinkle, anti-aging hope.

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - Silicon Valley, with its influence and economic clout soaring to all-time highs, is having its pop culture moment. But the stream of movies, books, even a reality TV show spotlighting nerdy start-up culture have all been widely panned locally as cheap caricatures. With Sunday's kickoff of Mike Judge's "Silicon Valley" comedy series on HBO, the geeks here say Hollywood finally gets them - even as it mocks them. "It was like watching a bizarro version of your own reality," said Tesla Motors Chief Executive Elon Musk, after the Silicon Valley premiere Wednesday night at this city's historic Fox Theatre, where stars of the show walked the red carpet and the tech glitterati came out in force.

SAN FRANCISCO - It's becoming a familiar scene in everybody's favorite city - luxury shuttles with Wi-Fi and plush seats barreling past sluggish, dilapidated city buses crammed with local residents standing elbow to elbow. The nerd convoy, ferrying workers to technology companies in Silicon Valley, has raised the ire of civic activists who see it as a symbol of a divide between the haves and have nots as the region's tech boom has sent housing costs and evictions soaring. But as heated as that backlash has become at times, it has obscured a much broader story that these buses have to tell about changes sweeping across not just San Francisco but also the entire Bay Area.

Question: I have lived in Silicon Valley my whole life. I am 70 years old and retired. I recently applied for housing at an apartment complex and asked the leasing agent what my chances were of getting an apartment. He told me they had received a lot of applications. When I asked if it was worth it to apply at all, he shrugged and said I was "up against some Google people. " I was outraged. Am I being discriminated against, since he implied that I did not stand a chance of being chosen over a person who works for Google?

Now that the Google Barge has left the San Francisco Bay and set sail for less choppy waters, Silicon Valley needs another good mystery. And thanks to the city of San Jose, we've got one! On Wednesday, the city of San Jose gave swift approval to a gargantuan 10-building complex to be built in the northern part of the city along U.S. Highway 101, reports the San Jose Mercury News. It's 2 million square feet of office-cubicle goodness, just a short drive from the city's airport. STORY: Silicon Valley is having an architectural breakthrough And because it will be able to fit up to 10,000 workers, whoever is going to occupy this baby will become the city's second largest employer, behind Cisco Systems, says the Mercury News.

A remarkable transformation is taking place in the heart of Los Angeles. Over the last 10 years, downtown L.A. became vibrant as it built ties to the south, reaching USC and Exposition Park. From the Walt Disney Concert Hall to the California Science Center, a dynamic innovation corridor is taking shape around Figueroa Street. But the most dramatic change will only come once Figueroa is reinvented to facilitate the flow of people and break down fences. Innovation thrives on clusters: interconnected businesses, creativity across sectors and fluid jobs.

Tylt Lab, a new Santa Monica venture capital firm, has raised $20 million for early-stage start-ups in Silicon Beach. The fund will support local entrepreneurs through seed to series A investments, Tylt said, estimating that this year it will be making 12 to 15 investments ranging from $50,000 to $2 million. The company said it focuses on "businesses disruptive to their industries," which include lifestyle products, mobile platforms and services, home automation, software-oriented transactions, consumer goods, clean tech, e- healthcare and entertainment.

Challenging the conventional wisdom about silicone breast implants, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital said Tuesday that preliminary laboratory tests in a handful of women suggest that implants may actually help combat breast cancer when the silicone seeps into the body.

Federal authorities filed suit Friday to stop a Newport Beach dermatologist from injecting patients with industrial grade liquid silicone to correct skin conditions such as wrinkles and acne scars and to enlarge lips. The complaint was filed against Dr. James E. Fulton, a co-developer of Retin-A, the Vitamin A derivative that has been touted as effective in preventing wrinkles. Fulton has developed other cosmetic products that purport to soften and smooth wrinkles and scars.

Ask anyone about L.A. tech these days and they'll almost certainly point to Santa Monica and Venice, where hundreds of start-ups have emerged in the last few years. So-called Silicon Beach is home to Snapchat, sizable Google and Microsoft offices, and a growing number of venture capital firms and co-working spaces. Almost every night, tech entrepreneurs flock to networking happy hours and parties. Potential investors flock to demo days that showcase the latest start-ups. When BlackBerry Chief Executive John Chen and Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt came to town last week, it was for a glitzy tech confab in Santa Monica.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Has class warfare come to the exclusive Silicon Valley enclave of Atherton? In the Lindenwood neighborhood, where average home prices exceed $7 million, vandals last week spray-painted black graffiti targeting the “1%” on walls, garage doors, a gate, a car, even white picket fences. "Most people think this is a one-time thing, but I wouldn't be surprised if security-camera companies are doing a lot of business right now," Vice Mayor Rick DeGolia told the San Francisco Chronicle . "I think everyone's hoping this doesn't happen again.